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Tuesday, March 24, 2015

If you've ever wondered what you should do with old electronics that you're no longer using, we have the answer. First, let's see why disposing of electronics properly or why recycling them is so important.

There is a lot that goes into making consumer electronics and much of that material is harmful to our environment. It's important that we don't just throw away old equipment with regular household waste because of the many harmful effects they can have over time. Some of the harmful materials that are commonly found in today's electronics are: chlorinated solvents, flame retardents, heavy metals (lead & mercury), plastics, and more. In fact, it's estimated that approximately 40% of the heavy metals found in landfills today, come from electronics disposal. That's a lot of lead and mercury.

What you can do to help.

Don't throw electronics in with household trash.

Donate for reuse, if possible.

Find an e-cycler near you.

Bring it in to iTech-Kalona.

If you are not able to find a way to safely get rid of your old electronics, iTech in Kalona will gladly make sure they don't just end up in our landfills. Through iTech's e-cycling program, we accept all old electronics, whether small or large, for a nominal fee depending on the size and quantity. Stop by or call us today, (319) 656-1234, if you have any questions or want to dispose of your old electronics.

Friday, February 13, 2015

Our friends at the Washington Chamber passed along some information that we want to also share with you.

WATCH:
There are a couple other scam/phishing alerts to take note
of.

1) If you receive a
friend request on Facebook from someone that you are already friends with,
chances are that their account had been phished and the hacker is pushing the
invites out to people on their friends list. A clue could be that their names
are spelled a little differently (an extra 'n' or something). Delete the friend
request and any private messages they send. Then change your Facebook
password.

Wednesday, February 4, 2015

A couple weeks ago we addressed the rumors and news speculating that RadioShack, the national corporation, isn't doing well. Those rumors remain today and have been gaining momentum so we would like to speak to you again regarding this subject.

Technology Services of Iowa (TSI), is a local company that is affiliated with KCTC (Kalona Cooperative Telephone Company), and TSI been in business since 2007. As TSI, we've operated in the past and continue to operate today, not only as a RadioShack dealer but also as iTech, your local technology experts. In a nutshell, this means that we buy some of our inventory from corporate RadioShack to resell locally. Since our inception, we have never had an exclusive partnership with RadioShack. This has allowed us the freedom to partner with many other companies and vendors to bring top quality merchandise and electronics to the Kalona area and to you, our valued customers. As such, if any of the rumors regarding corporate RadioShack come true, then we will continue to operate locally with zero interruptions and we'll continue to serve our community just like we have since 2007.

We want to be very clear on these subjects. As of today, everything you're seeing and reading regarding RadioShack, is rumor and/or speculation. There have been no official announcements from RadioShack and they are continuing operations today as they have for the last 94 years. Secondly, if these rumors do come true, Technology Services of IA, our local company, will continue to operate as usual and we are looking forward to continued growth of our business and in serving our community.

As is always the case, if you have any questions, feel free to give us a call at (319) 656-1234.

Friday, January 30, 2015

Don't get fooled again, is a great song by The Who. What does that have to do with technology? Well nothing really, but every so often we receive calls from people in our community about potential scams being perpetrated against them. Don't get fooled by them!

If you ever receive a call, a pop up message on your computer, or possibly an email stating that your computer is infected or at risk, I urge you to use extreme caution. In many cases, the perpetrators of these scams may be trying to gain access to your computer where they'll either create a problem and then charge you to fix it, or they'll simply tell you there are major problems when in fact there are no problems whatsoever. Either way their main objective is to make money at your expense. The only thing certain when dealing with these types of people is they do not have your best interests in mind.

If you think you've fallen victim to one of these scams or if you think your pc or laptop is not running the way it should be, our CompTia A+ certified tech, Kendall, would be more than happy to get your pc or laptop cleaned up and secured. Don't hesitate to get in touch with Kendall at (319) 656-3668.

Friday, January 23, 2015

KCRG and Directv have yet to come to an agreement for Directv to carry KCRG programming. You can read more about the dispute here. If you're a Directv customer and you're getting fed up, we wouldn't blame you. Regardless of who's side you're on you probably just want things to get back to normal so that you can continue to watch the programming you've been accustomed to receiving. In Kalona and surrounding areas you have options.

Your best option, if you're in their service area, would be to consider KCTC TV as your new provider. They carry tons of great channels and programming in their packages and Kalona TV still has all local channels available in SD and HD format. Call KCTC at (319)656-3668 to inquire.

The second option you have would be to pick up an antenna so that you can receive KCRG and other local stations over the air, for free. ITech, the technology experts, in Kalona has a selection of indoor and outdoor TV antenna's that can be installed so that you can tune in to all local channels, over the air, at no additional cost. Feel free to stop in, call us at (319)656-1234, or email sales@tsi-llc.net with any questions.